More than one million Ukrainian nationals have fled to Russia as a result of the civil war in eastern Ukraine. More than 280,000 Ukrainians have received refugee status or temporary asylum in Russia. These statistics were presented by First Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Gorovoy at the 67th meeting of the Executive Committee of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Programme in Geneva.

“We continue to accommodate Ukraine’s citizens that had to flee their country urgently and in droves in the wake of the domestic armed conflict. More than one million Ukrainians have come to our country,” the deputy minister said. “More than 280,000 of them have been registered as refugees or have gained temporarily asylum status.”

Moreover, in his words, given the situation in the Middle East, Russia continues to host “Syrian and Afghan nationals seeking asylum on the territory of the Russian Federation.”

Gorovoy pointed out that Russia “is a key destination for migrants from the CIS region, as up to 75% of migrants from there head to Russia.” The country also “has a unique experience in accommodating and integrating migrants” while Russia’s migration legislation stipulates “a simplified procedure for foreign nationals and stateless persons to receive residency permits provided they arrive in the country massively and on an emergency basis.”.